Letters to the Editor: Traffic outside schools is unsafe and unbearable. Mandate carpooling

To the editor: Michael Schneider believes cars should be banned near L.A. schools. I live near an elementary school in the middle of a residential neighborhood. There are three speed humps in the block in front of the school and a stop sign at both ends of the block.

In the 38 years I have lived here, I am unaware of a serious crash, but I suspect there is a near miss every day.

The reason is that almost every child is driven individually by a parent, and there are too many cars converging on one narrow street all at once.

Parents and children dart across the street between cars, and not at the stop signs. Parents ignore the drop-off and pick-up lanes. Traffic is a mess twice a day.

If the school required carpooling and had a traffic reduction plan, it would be safer for the children and there would be fewer cars, making life easier for everyone.

Michael E. Mahler, Los Angeles

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To the editor: Schneider’s suggestion to keep cars from driving near schools would not solve the problem of children getting hit. The problem would simply move the danger farther from the school.

And what about people who live directly across from the school? Are they to stay under lockdown during school hours?

Perhaps educating drivers and warning children to be extra cautious when crossing the street might do more good.

Colleen McAllister, Burbank